Expose the Vulpine
by Mareo and Anime
Summary: Naruto's got something to tell Hinata, but will she take it the right way? NaruHina, but not as you would think.
1. Chapter 1

Expose the Vulpine

Something I thought of when having a break from Exams. (Note to everybody; don't take Media Studies! XD) Enjoy!

(Ps: Can anyone find the 'Naruto: Abridged' reference? A cookie to anyone who finds it!)

* * *

'_Why me?_

_Why… me?_'

He raised and banged his fist down gently against the lamp-post, resting his forehead against it and sighing, a small frown on his forehead. This wasn't one of the usual annoyances he had to deal with- not the fact that Granny-Tsunade didn't have any decent missions for him, not the fact that Akamaru stole his most recent ramen cup, nor the fact that he couldn't get his head round the new genjutsu theory-

Hinata.

Naruto's screwed his eyes shut, muttering out a string of curse words to vent his frustration.

"Why Hinata? Why did she pick me?" he whispered. "She's too nice to have to…" He sighed again, leaning up and running a hand through his tousled yellow hair, looking up at the dawn sky. He _really_, _really_ hated to do this to her, but... "I've got to find her."

* * *

He sprang from tree-limb to tree-limb, aimlessly searching the forest for her. Stopping on a branch, he squatted down, peering around as he caught his breath. "Huh?" He perked his head up as he heard a thumping sound, followed by a few grunts of exertion. 

He spotted a flash of blonde down near the forest floor. He grinned, jumping down to her.

"Hey! In-!" He yelled to her, only to be cut off by a shuriken flying at his face. With a yelp, he hastily deflected it with his kunai, landing in a crouch and looking annoyed.

"Naruto!" She snapped angrily at him, wiping the sweat off her forehead with the back of one hand and several shuriken in the other. "You idiot! Don't distract someone when they're training!"

"Me?!? You should watch where you're throwing them!"

"I was." She pointed to something behind him. He turned around to see a straw training doll impaled with several shuriken, which, with the added whiskers and goofy drawn-on smile, bore a striking resemblance to-

"Hey!" He yelled, pointing a finger at it and glaring back at Ino. "Is that supposed to be me?!?" She shrugged nonchalantly, folding her arms and turning the other way with her nose in the air.

"My training methods are my own." She looked back to him, frowning. "Is there something you wanted, or did you just come here to annoy me?" He spaced for a few seconds as he remembered, then his face became serious.

"Yeah, have you seen Hinata? I've been trying to find her all morning." She perked up at that fact, her surprised look melting into a smug smile.

"So, finally caught on, did you? Took you long enough. Although _what _she sees in you, I have no idea. I mean, I'd have seen her with Kiba _way_ before she saw anything with you." She didn't notice Naruto's frown slowly deepen as she spoke. "But, you can't choose who you crush on, I guess. Lucky it wasn't Sasuke, though." She clenched her fists and growled at the thought, ignoring Naruto completely. "That's the last thing I need; more competition! Although, I guess forehead-girl doesn't really stand a chance against me in the first place, so it's really-"

"Ino!" He snapped, bringing her back to reality.

"Alright, alright!" She huffed, putting the shuriken back in her waist pouch. "Honestly, you should learn to have a bit of patience. And would it kill you to say plea-? please…?" she fell silent as she saw Naruto's deadly-serious expression. Her frown lessened significantly, and she smiled sheepishly. "Sorry… No, I haven't." His face fell, dejected. "But…" she added, seeing how disappointed he was.

"But?"

"You could try the hot springs. I heard she was getting too stressed out with training."

"Hot springs…?" He wondered aloud, frowning to himself. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at her. "Are you sure? 'Cause if I get run out of there, accused of trying to sneak in the ladies area-!" She snapped her head round angrily, clenching her teeth.

"What?!?" She growled, shaking her fist at him. "How dare you accuse me of-! Don't be disgusting! Where did you get an idea as perverted as-?!" She stopped herself, a puzzled look on her face. "Unless you've…" She narrowed her eyes, sending him an accusing look. He blanched as he realised he'd said too much.

"Well, thanks for the info, Ino! See ya'!" and vanished as fast as an Anbu.

She slipped a shuriken out of her waist pouch, twisting it between her fingers, a pensive look in her face. After a few seconds, she snorted "Pervert…" and flicked it at the dummy, hitting the Naruto-counterpart square between the eyes.

* * *

"AND STAY OUT, YOU ROTTEN KID!" The manager yelled, throwing out a semi-naked, whisker-cheeked girl from the hot springs. She landed heavily and sat cross-legged, groaning and rubbing her head. She vanished in a puff of smoke, replaced by a grumbling Naruto. He turned on the spot and stuck his tongue out at the owner, who stormed back inside. He got to his feet, brushing his jumpsuit down and muttering to himself. 

"How many times is that now?" A voice crunched, and he looked up to see Chouji munching his way through a packet of crisps, looking politely curious.

"…48." He muttered, looking embarrassed.

"Heh. Y'know, you'd be less recognised without the whiskers." He held out the packet, raising his eyebrows.

"Thanks!" He said gratefully, taking a handful. "I'm starving! I didn't get a chance to have breakfast this morning!"

"How come?"

"Mmgph?" He mumbled, mouth full of crisps. He forced it down and said "Oh, I was looking for Hinata. She can be really hard to find, now and again. She's not on a mission, is she?"

"Hinata? No, she's down by the river with Shikamaru and Lee."

"Eh? Fuzzy-brows and the lazy guy?" he frowned, trying to see the logic in that. (Of course, by Naruto's logic, 2 + 2 could equal 5, so that's nothing to go on.)

* * *

"I love hard work." Shikamaru commented, led down under the shade of a tree. Hinata, knelt down next to him, almost choked on her drink, thrown by this uncharacteristic comment. 

"Gllk-! I-I'm sorry?"

"Hard work. I could watch it all day." He replied, nodding to Lee, who was fully engaged in his activities to notice.

"Alright, new rule!" He announced to them, jumping up from his 50 press-ups. "If… If I can't jump onto the water and onto the far bank without making a ripple, I'll do 100 sit-ups!"

"Can't you do that anyway?" Shikamaru asked, raising an eyebrow, but Lee shook his head.

"Ah, but this time, I'll use half the Chakra I normally use!" he corrected. "It'll be difficult to move fast enough, but I can do it!"

"What a pointless exercise…" Shikamaru muttered, looking back up to the clouds.

"Oh, I-I don't know…" Hinata shrugged. "Isn't… Isn't training supposed to suit whoever's doing it?"

"Yeah, and…?"

"W-well, if this works for Lee, y-you shouldn't really say it's pointless, should you?"

"Thank you for you support, Hinata-san!" Lee grinned, giving her the 'nice guy' pose. "That's just the kind of youthful thinking Gai-sensei shares with us! Thank you!" Hinata gave him a warm smile.

"(Whatever…)" Shikamaru muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes before closing them.

Lee crouched down, like a runner about to sprint, facing the water. He almost set off when he perked his head up, glancing behind him. "Oh, Naruto-kun! Have you come to join me?"

Shikamaru's eye opened in annoyance as Hinata choked on her drink again, her cheeks suddenly reddening. Keeping her head stock-still, she looked out of the corner of her eye between the trees at Naruto, who'd just landed next to Lee.

'_Whatwhatwhatwhatwhatwhatwhatwhatwhatwhatwhat?!?!?!?!'_ She thought anxiously, lightly clenching her teeth and looking the other way, her hands drawing together to press the tips of her index fingers together. '_Naruto's here?!? What's he doing here? Why's he here?!? Wait- why am I questioning it?!? Naruto's actually here!!'_ A small, bashful smile spread over her lips as she saw Lee point towards Shikamaru and…

Towards…

She blanched.

"Ah, Hinata!" Naruto said in a cheery voice, jogging over to them.

"Ai-yah… How big is your mouth, moron?" Shikamaru winced, leaning his head away from him.

"Um… (H-Hi, N-Naruto-kun…)" she whispered, looking at her twiddling fingers.

"Hinata… Hi…" He said awkwardly, looking slightly lost. He just realised that he hadn't actually _thought_ of what he wanted to say to her. Classic bonehead moment…

A moment's silence.

Hinata couldn't look Naruto in the face, so settled at smiling shyly whilst looking in completely the opposite direction.

Naruto stood uneasily, one hand in his pocket and the other behind his head as he struggled for what to say, looking the other way as well.

Shikamaru looked between them, waiting. When no-one spoke, he rolled his eyes and bluntly asked "Well, Naruto? Spit it out!" Naruto shot him an annoyed look, growling under his breath, whilst Hinata's blush deepened, feeling embarrassed for Naruto.

"D'you mind?" Naruto snapped at him. "I want to talk to Hinata, not you." Hinata looked round for a split-second, wondering if she'd heard him right.

"Fine." He said nonchalantly, closing his eyes.

"…alone?" He prompted. Hinata's face, which had had a good try at getting back to its usual pale complexion, burned back into crimson at that, and she hastily looked the other way again.

"Look, I'm comfy. I don't move when I'm comfy. Therefore, take it somewhere else." Shikamaru said, eyes still closed, waving him away with random wafts of his hand like he was some pesky fly.

"(Idiot…)" Naruto muttered, glaring at him. His gaze shifted to Hinata and he gave an embarrassed chuckle. "Heh… Guess I'll have to catch you later… If… that's alright, that is…?" He asked, raising his eyebrows to her.

She raised her head slightly, realised he'd asked her a question, and quickly looked round- only to look down again as their eyes met for a split-second, and her face grew red.

"(Um… O-Okay, Naruto-kun…)" She mumbled to her wringing hands, to shy to look him in the face.

"Say… later on tonight?" He ventured.

"(…wh-what?)" She whispered, overcoming her shyness to a degree by turning her head to face him, a look of shock on her face.

"Well, I mean," Naruto added hastily, feeling like he was pressuring her. "If you don't want to… I mean-"

"Yes!" She blurted out loudly, surprising both boys, before clamping her hands over her mouth and blushing as red as a beet, surprised at her own daring. She looked away in embarrassment, slowly peeling her hands away from her mouth. "(I-I mean…)" she squeaked, almost inaudibly. "(Y-yes…)"

Naruto smiled gently, slightly amused at her reaction. He was told she _liked_ him, but not to _this_ extent… "Alright then… So, I guess I'll… I'll see you later, then…" He gave her a small wave, smiling awkwardly. He paused for a second or two, wondering if he should say anything else while Hinata simply blushed lightly, a small smile on her face.

"Question: How can you 'see her later', as you put it," Shikamaru complained, eyebrow raised. "If you don't go away?"

"What?!?" Naruto snapped, shaking a fist at him as a vein bulged on his head. "Say that again!"

"No, since it's obvious you heard me the first time."

"Whatever." He grumbled, sticking a tongue out at him. "See ya' later, Hinata!" he added cheerfully as he departed. '_Hope she doesn't take my offer the wrong way…' _He thought sadly, giving out a small sigh.

"I'll have to admit it, he's a nice guy." Shikamaru commented, raising an eyebrow. "An utter simpleton with the cranial capacity of a log and the social skills of a brick wall, but a nice guy nonetheless. Took him long enough to get round to asking you out, anyway. Although _what_ you like about him so much I've no idea…" He commented, unknowingly mimicking the words his team-mate has said before. Perhaps Ino _was_ rubbing off on him…

It didn't matter _what _Shikamaru said, for there was only one thought going round Hinata's head, and she quivered with barely-suppressed joy every time she thought it, a gleeful smile on her face;

'_I'm going on a date with Naruto!'_

_

* * *

_

Stay tuned for Chap. 2!


	2. Chapter 2

"Okay… Next time, work out a time and place…" He muttered to himself several hours after that, having searched for her for the last half-hour. He'd returned to where he'd asked her ou- asked her about meeting him, just in case she'd come there, but there was still no sign of her. He glanced up in annoyance, towards the treetops of the forest.

"Might as well get a bit of practice in whilst I'm looking…" He ran straight at a tree and, diverting Chakra to his feet, lifted his leg up, planted it firmly on the vertical bark and pushed off. He skirted round a low branch, dodging and weaving between the tree limbs, aiming to get to the top in the shortest time possible. His speed and concentration paid off, as he reached the canopy in mere seconds, quietly proud of himself.

Popping his head through the treetops like a meerkat, he frowned to himself, turning on the spot to try and find her. He perked up when he saw a figure jumping towards him. He cupped his hands over his mouth and took a deep breath…

'_I wish Naruto-kun had told me _where_ he wanted to meet me…' _she frowned, trying and failing to stay angry at him as she sprinted over the treetops. She supposed her best chance of finding him would be to return to where he asked her out-

'_Asked me out…'_ She thought dreamily, her anger evaporating immediately. She almost purred in happiness every time she thought about it. Ohh, just thinking where it would lead made her-

"Heeeeyyyy! Hinata-chan!!!!!!!" She yelped, coming to a sudden stop on the treetop. She looked up quickly, glancing round in surprise. A movement to her left caught her attention, and she looked to see Naruto springing towards her, grinning cheerily. He pointed downwards and nodded to her, hopping down through the canopy, and, nodding, she copied him, landing silently on the branch a few metres below.

They stood a few feet apart, and an awkward silence grew.

"Um…" Naruto started, scratching his cheek in embarrassment. "So, you made it! Heh, sorry about not working out the details with you…"

"No, no, that's alright…" She said immediately, pressing her index fingers together and looking away shyly. It was lucky _he_ was late as well, as she'd almost fretted the time away on if she should where something 'fancy' or not.

He crouched down, shifting his weight until he sat on the branch, legs dangling over one side. He glanced up at her, smiled lightly and patted the bark next to him. She took a step forward, but hesitated, glancing around nervously, as if afraid of being caught.

"Hinata, re_lax_!" He emphasised, patting the branch again and grinning. "There's no-one around for miles!" When she didn't seem convinced, he rolled his eyes exasperatedly. "Look, if it makes you feel any better, why not try your Byakugan?"

She smiled and nodded gratefully, raising two fingers in front of her face and closing her eyes.

"_Byakugan."_ She whispered, activating her Bloodline Limit, her family's best kept secret, and her edge in battle. Thick veins bulged round the edges of her eyes as her facial muscles violently contracted, forcing her eyes to snap open as her field of vision extended to meta-human proportions, giving her almost 720˚(1) of near-infallible, telescopic, nigh-unblockable sight. She slowly surveyed the surrounding countryside, giving each square metre a thorough scan before moving on. After half a minute, though, she nodded in satisfaction, closing her eyes and deactivating her enhanced sight. She turned to him and smiled. "No, there's no-one within miles of here."

It took her a few seconds and Naruto's brightening grin to realise the implications of what she'd just said. She gasped silently, her heart fluttering in her chest as she realised-

'_Ohmygosh! I'm-! I'm really alone with Naruto!!' _She thought ecstatically. _'Just me! No-one else! Me and Naruto! Naruto and me!'_ She turned on the spot and grabbed the neck of her jacket, trying to compose herself, trying to slow down her excited breathing, trying not to make a fool out of herself and ruin the moment-

Her meandering thoughts were interrupted by a gentle cough. She stiffened, and then looked slowly behind her. Naruto was looking up at her, his eyes narrowed humorously, with a knowing, if cheeky, smile on his face. He lifted his hand and deliberately patted the bark directly next to him, twitching his head to invite her to sit down.

Blushing slightly, she dithered again, casting one more glance around to be completely sure. She took a few tentative steps towards him, looking away, before standing where he'd suggested. She bent her unwilling knees to kneel beside him, then shifting her legs round, all the while keeping her back poker-straight and her gaze directly ahead, hardly daring to look to her left.

"(Y'see, that wasn't so hard…)" He said quietly, leaning in and nudging her shoulder with his. She meekly shook her head, looking away from him. He persisted, however, nudging her shoulder again. A smile crept onto her face as she glanced round, her shoulders relaxing. His grin became more pronounced as he poked her side with his elbow, provoking a small giggle from the Hyuuga at the accompanying wink.

"No… I guess not…" She admitted, brushing a stray hair over her ear. They remained like that for a while, looking out into the distance, with only the birdsong disturbing their tranquil thoughts.

It was almost half an hour later, in which they had simply enjoyed each others company that Naruto sat up a little straighter, looking away from her and frowning. She noticed instantly. She (daringly) leant forward into his field of vision.

"What?"

* * *

Quite short this time, but it'll be worth it!


	3. Chapter 3

"Hinata…" He began slowly, cursing the fact that he hadn't pre-prepared. He glanced at her. She raised her eyebrows, prompting him to continue, silently pushing her index fingers together.

"Yes?"

"Um… Oh!" He said, clicking his fingers in inspiration as an idea stuck him. "Y'know Neji?" She blinked, taken aback at that seemingly random comment.

"Um… Naruto, he _is_ my cousin…" She noted, tilting her head to point out the obvious.

"Right, yeah…" He muttered, blushing slightly because of his stupidity. "Um… Y'know he's got that…" He pointed to his forehead, trying not to say it out loud. "Thing… Yeah?"

"His… Curse Mark, yes?" She said uncomfortably, squirming slightly. This was _not_ the direction she wanted to go. She'd just managed to sneak away from her family; she didn't want to be reminded.

"Yeah…" He muttered apologetically, sensing her unease. "Well… He's had that since he was born, yeah?"

"Yes." She said quietly, frowning slightly. "Naruto, are we just going to talk about my family? Because, if we are, I don't want-"

"What-? No!" He said hastily, holding his hands out in case she meant to go. "No! I mean-! I-I-!" He growled in frustration, clenching his fists and resting them on his temples as he looked away. "No, I mean…" he said softly, looking back at her, begging her not to leave.

"L-look," he said, shifting slightly on the branch towards her. Her breath caught in her throat at their closer proximity. "I-I've heard around that, um…" he coughed, looking downhearted and embarrassed. She held her breath, silently pleading with him; _'Don't say it… Please, Naruto, DON'T say it…'_

"That you… _Like_ me."

She screwed her eyes shut, clenching her teeth as her face reddened with sheer humiliation and embarrassment, wishing and wishing the earth would just swallow her without a trace. He knew! He knew! He knew!

"A-and… I'm sorry, but… Listen, I really _am_ sorry, but…"

The blissful bubble that had been swelling in her chest suddenly popped as she realised. He had found out, and he didn't feel the same way. It must be. That's why he'd asked to meet her in private, why he looked so downhearted. She sadly hung her head, and gave out a quiet sigh. He grimaced at her reaction, hating himself for doing this to such a sweet girl.

"(N-Naruto-kun…)" She whispered, trying to stop her voice from shaking as she felt tears pricking the corners of her eyes. "(I-I… I-I'm sorry…)"

"What?" He blinked, unsure of why she was acting this way. "You're-? What? Why should you…"

"(I-I know you d-don't like me the w-way I l-l-like you…)" She couldn't look him in the face. "(B-but I couldn't h-help it… I-I'm sorry… I-I'm _so_ sorry… J-just p-p-please d-don't hate me…)" She wrapped her arms round herself, squeezing her eyes shut as tears fell freely, sobs shaking her shoulders.

"What?!?" He gaped. This was definitely _not_ how he wanted things to turn out. "No! Hinata, I… Hinata…?" She didn't hear him. "Hinata!" he said more forcefully, putting an arm round her shoulders and making him face her. She complied unresistingly, her head hanging as she continued to cry.

"HINATA!" He almost yelled, giving her a rough shake. She looked up in surprise, looking frightened as the shock temporarily stemmed the flow of tears. "Hinata, will you _listen_ to me? Please…?" He added, almost pleading with her. She nodded numbly, her cheeks wet.

"Hinata… I want you to understand one thing…" He said slowly and sincerely, looking right into her eyes.

"I. Do not. Hate you."

She stared at him, open mouthed, trying to realise what he just said. "(Wh-what…?)"

"I don't hate you." He repeated, a small smile coming onto his face. "I could _never_ hate you. You are…" He shook his head as words failed him. "You are a fantastic girl. You're… you're always so kind to everyone, you… you don't give up on what you believe in… you're just a great person… and…" His cheeks reddened slightly. "You're pretty, too."

She looked away, a small smile accompanying the small blush that crept over her face. "(N-no I'm n-)" She started modestly, but he interrupted;

"Yes. Yes you are." He gave her a small shake of encouragement. "You're an incredibly fantastic girl…"

She didn't know where to look. She kept flicking her gaze to his smiling face, then to the hem of her jacket she was wringing in her hands, then out over the forest, and then back to his face again.

"(Um… Th-thank you… Naruto-kun…)" she said humbly, looking away.

"That's why…" She looked back up to see him smiling sadly. "I'm sorry, but…" He closed his eyes, unwilling to see her disappointment. "You have to stay away from me."

"(Stay…?)" She whispered, eyes wide in confusion. "N-Naruto-kun, I-I don't…"

"I know, I know…" He said, shaking his head. "You don't get it- But…" He looked away in annoyance. How come it was _clear _in his head, but now he wanted to say it…? "Look, this is… this is kinda hard for me to say… And you know how useless I am at wording things." He smiled sadly, giving a shrug.

"A-alright…" Hinata said meekly, shrinking back slightly and watching his agitation with genuine concern. '_Something must really be bothering him…'_ she thought.

He sat for a few seconds, working it out for himself before he spoke.

"Hinata… Do… Do you remember when- when the village was attacked?"

"When? Which attack do you mean?"

"No, no. I-I mean, the last… _bi-ig_ attack," he spread his arms for emphasis. "Before the Third died…" Her brow furrowed as she tried to remember.

She shook her head, however. "…n-no… I'm sorry, Naruto, I don't remember anything big- sorry- _bi-ig_," She spread her arms like he did, feeling a little foolish. To her delight/embarrassment, though, she accidentally brushed Naruto's hand when putting them down again, and they both jerked away in surprise.

"Heh…" He grinned, blushing slightly. "S-sorry…" She quickly shook her head, looking the other way to hide her smile. "Um… Where was I…?"

"T-the last attack on-"

"Oh! Yeah…" He said, the thought sobering up the innocent moment. "Well, I-I mean the attack, ages ago… about… about 12 years ago…" He said, squirming uncomfortably as they slowly got closer to the topic. She lifted her gaze upwards as she tried to remember, until she started.

"Oh!" She looked over to him. "Y-you mean when the Kyuubi attacked?"

The silence that followed seemed to stretch and thicken as it grew.

"…yeah." He said slowly, his eyes dark, clenching his fists bitterly. Hinata winced at the sharpness of his tone.

"(N-Naruto-kun…?)" She said quietly, placing her comforting hand on his, past embarrassment forgotten. He glanced up, and on seeing her concern, gave her a smile, shifting his hand to hold her fingertips and give them a reassuring squeeze.

"I-I'm alright… Thanks." He said. She smiled gently back, sliding her hand out of his grip, not without a blush, and sat quietly, waiting for him to continue.

"Right… well, d-d'you know what…" He paused. "…what happened to the Kyuubi…?"

"W-well, no…" she frowned. "B-but I was always told it was k-killed…"

"Well then… That's… That's not exactly true…" he said vaguely, gulping apprehensively. "D'you know how Neji's seal works…? Sorry- Yeah, 'course you do." He shook his head in stupidity. "T-that seal, it's supposed to stop his Byakugan, right?" Hinata nodded, leaning forward anxiously, feeling butterflies in her stomach for some reason. "Well…" He gulped, putting a hand round his clenched fist to stop it shaking in nervous excitement. "T-that's what they did to the Kyuubi… They sealed it away… It… It was too powerful to be killed…"

"(N-Naruto-kun…)" She whispered, bringing her hands to her mouth, dread rushing through her as a horrible thought came into her head. "(Y-y-you're scaring me…)"

"They… they had to seal it away in a human…" He said through gritted teeth, despised to say it, but determined to get it out. He slowly turned his head to look at her, despair and regret on his usually jolly features, making the confession even more terrible to witness-

"They… they had to seal it away… in… me…"

Hinata stared, eyes wide in horror, mouth covered by her shaking hands.

"Hinata… I'm the host for the Kyuubi."


End file.
